Ghost of a Chance
by Uncle Charlie
Summary: There was always something weird about the Rawling's place, but until it reached out and grabbed him, Weed had no idea how weird.


James Weeden, Weed, to his friends, stood on the dilapidated porch and stared at the door. It was partially ajar, a passage to dark and shadows. A board protested beneath his weight and Weed grabbed onto the railing, in case it collapsed beneath him. God only knew what was growing under there after all this time, fed by the blood of the house's victims.

The house had been condemned long ago, but somehow the city had yet to pull it down. "Legal battles," Weed's parents muttered. "All because they are hoping to get a better seller out of this." He really didn't understand what they meant, but at fifteen, Weed didn't pay much attention to his parents. Mostly he just tried to fly under their radar.

"Go on, Weeden or are you chicken?" Barkley was the oldest of the group and the least likely kid to make it to eighth grade, according to their principal. Although Weed hadn't actually seen him do anything even remotely dangerous, there was an unmistakable sense of foreboding that surrounded him. For Barkley to label someone as 'yellow' was a mark against their reputation and at their age, it was all about their reputation and attitude.

"I'm going." Sunglasses hid Barkley's eyes, they always hid Barkley's eyes. The teen was an albino and had to take special precautions but Weed knew Barkley liked to hide behind them. He also knew those pale eyes were narrowed now, scrutinizing him. He also knew there was nothing to do but get on with it. His plan was to duck in behind the door and then hide in the shadows for a couple of minutes. Then he'd stagger back out, having freed himself from the fictitious demon hiding inside. He knew there was no such thing as ghosts.

Even so, there was an air of dread that hung over this poor collapsing structure, today more than others. Today was its anniversary. Two years ago, a family had been slaughtered in that house by the uncle. He was mentally challenged and had been declared a danger to society and himself. Rather than commit him, his parents kept him home. It was a decision that cost them their lives. The man went berserk one night and killed everyone. Suddenly realizing what he'd done, he turned the knife on himself, brutalizing and punishing himself for his actions, confessing before he died.

Since then, the house had been empty and rumored to be haunted by the spirits of the victims. There had been a few people who attempted to rent it, but they disappeared, often without their belongings and always on Halloween night. The police would always investigate and find nothing.

"Then what are you waiting for? Beruck, beruck, beruck." Barkley imitated a chicken, his long white blond hair flopping limply over his forehead. "Get on with it before it starts raining. I'm not catching cold because you **are **yellow."

With a scowl, Weed squared his shoulders and approached the door. For just a moment, he was tempted to call it off, then he heard the gang picking up on Barkley's chant. He pulled his beloved Red Sox hat off and tossed it to Hasting, his closest friend. "Hold this for me, Hasting," and then slipped inside and out of view.

He paused there, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. Light streamed in, struggling past the boards that covered the windows, and after a moment, he was able to make out shapes. Forgotten furniture and other belongings gathered dust and offered safe haven for critters. Weed could hear them rustling in the dark.

"Hey, Weed, you okay in there? It's starting to rain out here." He heard Barkley call. He ignored him, determined to let the 'big' man sweat for a couple of minutes. Unlike Barkley, he wasn't afraid of a little rain.

He continued to study the room, imagining it how it was. Once upon a time, it had been a warm and comforting place. He could picture the parents in front of the fireplace, probably reading or watching TV while kids played on the floor, never knowing that this would be their last moments of life.

That's when Weed heard the soft crying. He was a guy and immune to it himself, but the cries were so sad and so pitiful that he couldn't resist them. Without meaning to, he left the safety of the nearby door and followed them down a short hall to a back room.

"Hello?" he asked softly, ignoring the trembling in his voice. "Are you hurt? Can I help you?"

Suddenly, he was grabbed and for a moment he thought it was Barkley, pulling a trick on him. He struggled to escape and it seemed the more he fought, the harder the grasp. "Let me go! You're hurting me! Let me go!"

He twisted and jerked, finally freeing himself and Weed ran like he'd never run before. He got to the ajar door and chanced a look back. A large black shadow was lurching its way towards him. With superhuman effort, Weed wrenched open the door and escaped into the cool air. Behind him, he could hear the crying begin again. This time he wasn't fooled.

He caught himself on the railing, then tripped down the broken steps and fell to his knees. It felt as if he'd aged a million years since going in the house. He struggled back up to his feet and headed for the road. It hurt to breathe deeply and he held a hand against his ribs. He knew without looking that there would be bruises all over him. He felt as if he'd been caught in a vise

It was dark now and it looked as if he'd been abandoned by his cohorts. That wasn't surprising, though. Barkley had the attention span of a grape according to their 7th grade teacher.

"Figures," he muttered as he started down the sidewalk towards home. "Bunch of gutless wonders."

It seemed to take forever for him to get home, but finally the familiar shape of his house loomed ahead. That gave him the extra energy he needed to send him up the steps and in the front door.

Everything was different. That was weird. He looked around, confused for a moment that he was in the wrong house. "Mom? Dad?"

"Who are you?" The woman's voice made him turn around.

"I live here," Weed said and studied here. There was something familiar about her.

The woman cocked her head and then gasped, "Jimmie?" She staggered back a step as if she'd been struck. "Oh, my god, it's you!"

No one outside his family called him that, at least not anymore. "Who are you?"

"I'm Janie Doodle… your sister."

Even though he knew only he called her that, he still argued, "Get out of here. You can't be her. My sister's 12."

"So was I… 15 years ago. Jimmie, what happened to you? Where did you go?"

Weed stared past the woman studying at him into the large hall mirror. "I can't… this is a joke. I'm not a minute older." He touched his face and then the mirror. A confused young boy looked back at him. "Janie, how is this possible?"

"I don't know. Halloween fifteen years ago, you didn't come home. Mom and Dad were frantic. Remember your gang and that weird Ted Barkley? They told the cops some cock and bull story about you going into the old Rawling's place and never coming out. The cops investigated, but all they found was your baseball cap on the front porch." Janie held out a faded cap. "I kept it."

"I gave it to Hasting to hold onto until I came back out." It wasn't until that moment that Weed even missed it. With a trembling hand, he reached for it and put it on. At least he felt a little better with it on.

"They looked and looked for you, but it was like you just vanished into thin air. For a while, they thought Barkley had done something. You know how jealous he was of you and it was mighty suspicious that he went missing right after you did, but the other boys backed him up. They insisted he was with them until it started raining, then they scattered. Barkley vanished and his family acted like they didn't know who they were talking about. The police were at them for weeks. Finally, the police closed the case. Dad hired a PI for a while, but he couldn't find anything either."

"But I was only inside for a couple of minutes. Something grabbed me, but I escaped." He pulled up his shirt and showed her the bruises. "See? They're still fresh."

She hesitantly touched one, as if afraid to hurt him. "Wow… so it really did happen."

"Uh huh. Where's Mom and Dad?"

"Florida. It got to be too much for them. Every Halloween some group or the other would hold a séance in front of the place, trying to reach you. For a while, Daddy went along with it, just hoping it would bring Mom some peace, but it made her condition worse."

"Condition?"

"She developed a heart issue just before you vanished. No one said anything to you about it because they didn't want us worrying. Jimmy, what do we do now?"

**All irregularities will be handled by the forces controlling each dimension; Transuranics heavy elements may not be used where there is life. Medium atomic weights are available: Gold, Lead, Copper, Jet, Diamond, Radium, Sapphire, Silver, and Steel. Sapphire and Steel have been assigned.**

The man wore a simple gray suit, its lines clean and precise, much like the visage of the man wearing it. One look and you could tell that this was a man who didn't laugh or perhaps even smile. Cold, hard, unforgiving, just like the material he was created from. "Tell me about this house, Sapphire."

She stepped out of the shadows and into a pool of light cast over her shoulder by a streetlamp. Unlike the man, she was dressed in a cornflower blue dress, the skirt flowing and the top clinging in just the right places. If he noticed, Steel said nothing.

For her part, Sapphire merely smiled and accessed her memory. Her voice took on a monotone edge. "It was constructed in the 1930's prior to the start of World War II and was often referred to as a 'cracker box house' due to the thinness of the walls. The architects specifically designed them to be thin because of new construction materials, steel and reinforced concrete. The walls were thin because they were better able to support the weight than previous structures. The only visual clue to this was the area around the windows. It was especially designed to highlight the thinness of the walls. However, not everyone appreciated them and eventually the houses were given the nickname. The framework is steel overlaid with white Douglas fir and stucco."

"Stucco?" Steel didn't recognize the word.

"A sort of plaster consisting of sand, cement, lime, and water. Paint analysis -"

"That's enough. What happened here?"

"A tragedy. A family was murdered. Mother, father, two boys and a girl."

"Details?"

"It was fairly well documented. The murderer was believe to be the wife's brother. One night he chose to take the lives of his family and then commit suicide."

Steel sighed, resisting the temptation to deride the human race. It seemed to him that humans deserved whatever happened to them, but They did not agree. He approached the house and, upon impulse, reached out.

_That's not what happened._ The steel of the house sang to him. Frowning, Steel reached out with his other hand.

_Tell me what happened_

_Not how it happened. Trapped._

_Who is trapped?_

_We are. All of us are. Help us. Free us._

Steel let his hands drop and swayed slightly. Immediately Sapphire was at his side, steadying him. "Steel are you all right?"

"The construction of the house disagrees with the official story."

"I beg your pardon."

He looked at his hand. "It spoke to me, the steel."

"Like it did on the ship? On the Titanic"

"In a fashion. I suspect having been in close contact with humans, its thoughts are more cohesive. It said that it was not how it happened and that they were all trapped."

"Trapped?" Sapphire mulled over the word. "I suppose while the house remains standing, the building material might feel that way. Yet, I wonder if that extends to anything else."

"Such as?"

"You know as well as I that energy cannot be created or destroyed, merely altered."

"Of course."

"There is an energy here. It's powerful but directionless. It's like a loop, spinning endlessly." Hesitantly, she touched the railing and gasped. Instantly, Steel was there, pulling her free.

"What is it?"

"There was a boy. He… he was here twice. Once fifteen years ago and then again tonight, but…"

"But?"

"His signature was the same. Each time he was exactly the same age, give or take, a few minutes."

"How is that possible? Humans age as a rule. Wait, is he human?"

"I… I think so. His signature reads as such. His name is James Weeden. His close associates call him Weed. His family calls him Jimmie."

"Where does he live? Is it close?"

Abruptly, they were standing outside the front door of a two-story house, complete down to the white picket fence. "He is here. He is not alone."

Through the door, they could hear, "She developed a heart issue just before you vanished. No one said anything to you about it because they didn't want us kids worrying. I didn't find out until a few years later. Jimmy, what do we do now? Should I call Mom and Daddy?"

"And tell them what? Hey, guys, I'm alive. Sorry I've been missing for fifteen years. I lost track of time."

Her voice sounds small. "You don't have to be mean."

Immediately, he was hugging her waist. "I'm sorry. I'm scared, Janie Doodle. I don't know what to do or who would even believe me."

"We will."

Sister and brother gave simultaneous gasps at the voice and spun. The woman standing in the open doorway had long blonde hair and a sympathetic smile. She didn't look dangerous, but the man behind her gave off an unsettling vibe. Jane took an involuntary step behind her brother, still seeing him as a protector.

"You needn't fear us," the woman continued. "My name is Sapphire and my partner's name is Steel." She indicated the man who turned his back to them, as if they were beneath his notice. "Forgive him. He doesn't do well with strangers. He's a little shy"

Steel turned and scowled. _Sapphire! _He mentally chastised her, but she merely smiled again.

"You were in the Rawlings House early tonight."

"Yeah, I mean… I thought." Weed looked at his sister, touching her face. "I thought I was, but something happened. I'm still a kid, but everything else… had moved on."

"Tell us what happened and leave nothing out, no matter the significance." Steel's word were a command and for a moment it looked as if the boy would refuse. Then he took a deep breath and nodded.

"Okay, but can I sit down? It's been a crazy night and I feel a little weird."

"That's not surprising. You are out of time. Sapphire, can he?"

Quickly she scanned the room and found a chair from the right time period. "That one. You may sit in that one and not alter anything."

Weed wanted to make a crack about how it was the Time Out chair and he wasn't about to be stuck in the corner with Baby, but Steel turned then and the coldness of the man's features overruled any smartass comeback. He sat abruptly and without protest. "I don't know where to begin."

Sapphire entered the room and glanced about at the furnishings. "I often find that the beginning is the best. Why did you make the decision to enter the house?"

"We were just bull sh—goofing around and Barkley started daring everyone. You know, like he always did. Jerk…"

"Who?"

Weed scowled at the mere thought. "Ted Barkley. He moved here in September and just sort of took over the gang. He was bigger and stronger than anyone else, not even Horse could whup him. He said that we were all yellow and I said we weren't and he said that to prove it I had to go into the Old Rawlings Place."

"Why there?" Steel was all attention. "What made that an especially significant feat of daring?"

"Everyone knows it's haunted and they said that Halloween night was the worst."

"Why that particular night?" Sapphire took a seat upon an uncomfortable-looking chair. She cocked her head and Weed knew he had her hook, line, and sinker.

"Why, that's the night he did it, you see. That's the night Rudy killed them all."

Steel and Sapphire exchanged looks. "Who's Rudy?" Sapphire asked.

"Who's Rudy? Where are you people from?" Weed shouted and Jane held up her hand.

"Hush, Jimmie. Rudy Rawlings was thought to have caused the death of his family. He wasn't quite right in the head. It was Halloween night and the kids were all running around, trick or treating. The noise always agitated him because he wanted to be out there with him. Externally, he was a man, but in his head, he was still a little boy."

Steel snapped a look at Sapphire. _I'll explain later._

"A couple of the kids heard shouts and screams from the place and told the cops, but no one believe them, thinking they were just playing tricks. The next morning, the paperboy was delivering the paper and saw blood on the front porch. This time the police listened, but they were too late. The entire family, except for Rudy, was dead and he was dying. He was horribly hurt and he kept crying that he was sorry." Jane paused and looked down at her hands as she wrung them. "He died on the way to the hospital."

"How tragic." Sapphire's face grew sad.

"It really was. I liked Rudy."

"What?" Weed was on his feet. "Are you out of your mind!?"

"Jimmie, it was okay. Rudy was really strong, but he was only about four or five years old in his mind. We'd play together and Mrs. Rawlings would always tell Rudy to shake my hand good bye, never hug me."

Sapphire was perplexed. "Why was that?"

"He would have crushed her!" Weed spat out, on his feet again. "Just like he did his entire family. Squash them like a bug! I can't believe Mom and Dad let you near him."

"They didn't know." Jane sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. "He was so sweet, but Jimmie was right. Mentally he was about three, but physically about 25. He was very strong and I can remember that he'd start to cry when he shook my hand because all he wanted to do was hug. According to his mom, he loved to be hugged. I couldn't believe he did it. I still don't."

"Didn't the police investigate?" Steel started drumming a hand against one of his legs. He was never good at just standing around. He preferred action. "I thought that's what their function was."

"Why?" Weed asked. "Rudy confessed before he died, or as close to confessing as the retard could."

"James Arthur Weeden!" Jane's face grew red as she turned on him. "How dare you! He wasn't a retard! He was slow, but he was kind and sweet." She trailed off. "He just didn't know his own strength. He was like that character in _Grapes of Wrath_. Did you ever read that? It was sad."

"We are digressing from the point, I think." Steel approached the boy. "What did you do in the house?"

"I… I walked in and I was looking around… something grabbed… no, wait, I heard someone crying. It was so sad that I went to see. I thought maybe one of the younger kids got inside and was scared. Then something grabbed me from behind and I thought I was going to be crushed to death." He lifted his shirt and showed them the vivid bruising around his chest.

Steel frowned and leaned in. "You must have put up quite a fight."

"I did and then, all of a sudden, whatever it was let me go. I ran outside, but everyone had left, so I came home." He looked at his sister and then himself. "To find this."

"Sapphire?"

"Tell me more about Barkley," Sapphire said. She was moving now, trailing a hand along surfaces as if looking for dust.

"He was awful," Jane snapped as if annoyed by Sapphire's actions. "He was a bully and just plain nasty. He picked on the little kids and made them cry. He was also very charismatic when he wanted to be. All the girls in my class had a crush on him. They would do his homework for him."

"Except you," Sapphire interrupted with a smile.

She crossed her arms. "I saw him for what he was."

"And that was?" Steel was pacing now.

"Not one of us."

"Meaning?" He stopped and studied her until she turned away from the intensity of his gaze.

"I don't know. He… he was like an adult trying to act like a kid." Jane resettled in her chair. "He was older, held back a grade or two, I guess. He was bigger and… angry, really, really angry. I thought it was because of what he was."

_Again? Is this women ever going to finish a thought?_

_Be patient, Steel. Some humans need to be coaxed along._ "How was he different, Jane?"

"He was an albino. Instead of letting it make him an outcast, he used it to his advantage, scaring the younger kids into doing his bidding and physically forcing the older ones to." She looked at her brother. "Just like he did you."

"He was gonna tell everyone I was chicken," Weed snapped, then he sighed as he studied his hand. "Now I wish he had."

Sapphire's voice was soft and coaxing. "Could we speak with this person?"

Janie walked to her brother and hugged him. "No, he vanished right after. His family acted like he'd never existed. People stared saying that they'd killed him because of the shame and after a while, they left town." She brushed away a tear with her knuckle. "I wish that old house would just fall down and be done with it."

"Why haven't they torn it down?" Steel handed her his handkerchief and she smiled wanly at him as she dabbed her eyes.

"Thank you. That's very kind of you. They've tried a bunch of time, but every time they do, some fancy lawyer shows up with an injunction or something and stops them. It's as if someone doesn't want it leveled."

_Sapphire…_

_Yes, I know._ "I know what I am asking is frightening, but you would come back to the Rawlings house with us?"

"What? No!" Janie pushed her brother behind her. "I won't let him. I just got him back."

"Why?" Weed was more direct. "I want the truth. I know there's something weird about that place."

"The truth might be more than you would care to know," Steel warned.

"I won't go until you do."

"All right," Sapphire paused and took a deep breath. "Think of time as an endless corridor always moving in just one direction, but time is like a raging river, always looking for a weak spot in its banks to overflow. When it does, its destruction is absolute."

Weed thought for a moment, "You think it broke its banks at the Rawlings house?"

_Fast on the uptake, _Steel thought to his partner. "And when it did, what do you think happened?"

Weed though for a moment and then his eyes grew round. "The family drowned."

"Exactly… except for Rudy. He was strong enough to resist the current."

Jane's voice was tinged with sadness. "They said he was terribly injured, mutilated."

Sapphire squeezed Jane's shoulder gently. "He fought against Time and tried to save his family. Your friend was a hero."

"That's why he kept apologizing." Weed suddenly got it. "Not because he killed them, but because he couldn't save them."

Steel nodded just once. "Yes, exactly. The Rawlings house is what we call a Time Eddy. Inside the house, time has ceased to move, rather just swirling around in a whirlpool. All that energy builds up, looking for a host. All that power, if you can access it, you are invincible. If you can't, it envelopes and crushes the victim until all the life force is pulled out."

"Me," Weed murmured.

"You. Somehow, though, you were able to breach it and escape. If you hadn't, you would have simply vanished."

"Just like all those other people," he murmured. "There had been countless stories of people trying to live there and they just vanished."

"And no one thought to look for them?" Steel shook his head as he turned and started to walk to the door. _Tell me again why we must save these people?_

_Because they can't do it themselves._

Sapphire tried to make the words soft. "Jimmie, we need you to show us how you did it."

"Now. Before it gets any stronger." Steel reached for Jimmie and Jane stepped in front of him.

She shook her head resolutely. "And lose him for another fifteen years? No way! I won't allow it." She started to place a hand on Steel's chest, then slowly dropped it as if thinking better of touching the stranger

Weed smiled sadly. "Janie Doodle, it's not your call. If I do this, will it make things right?"

"That is the hope. We will be with you and will do our best to keep you safe."

Jane reached for a sweater. "Then I'm going, too."

"Janie -"

"I'm not losing you again." She hugged Jimmie hard. "Not ever."

_Is he a sacrificial lamb, Steel? Like Tully?_

_No, Sapphire, not like Tully. We need to restore the natural order and correct time. It won't be as easy as it was with Tully. _"You don't need to worry, young lady. We will be there." Steel did his best to appear comforting.

"You?" Weed snorted. "I could break you with one hand."

Steel squared his shoulders. "Appearances can be misleading, of that I assure you."

"He might be short, but he makes up for it in resolution," Sapphire added.

_I am not short._

"And he's very stubborn." Sapphire smiled at Steel's glare. "You will be well protected."

"Janie Doodle, I have to do this, honey." He talked to her as if she was a scared kid as opposed to a woman. "Not just for me, but Mom and Dad and even your friend Rudy. If we have a chance to fix this, then we have to try. You need to be brave for me for just a little bit longer."

Sapphire smiled at her partner. _What were you saying about humans, Steel? _

"_You can be very annoying._

_Especially when I'm proven right._

The foursome stood in front of the Rawlings House and Jimmie was surprised that very little had changed.

"Retrace your footsteps for us," Sapphire said, making it more of a suggestion than an order.

"Okay. We came from the school yard. It was Halloween night and I could hear the kids trick or treating in the background.

"Who is we, please?" Steel was staring at the building as if listening to it.

"Um, me, Hasting, Corky, Big T, Horse, and, of course, Barkley. He was all freaked out because it was supposed to rain. He didn't like the rain, for some reason, so he was in a big hurry." Weed bit his bottom lip and climbed up the stairs, his brow furrowed in thought. "I remember climbing up onto the porch and one of the boards creaked." He took a step up and the responding creak made him shiver. "I grabbed the railing, just in case it collapsed beneath me."

Sapphire nodded and to Steel. "That was the first time."

Weed either didn't hear or didn't care. "Then I went inside… no, wait, I took off my hat."

Steel looked confused. "Why?"

"It's just good manners not to wear your hat in someone else's house, plus I didn't want to drop it inside and have to go back for it. I got that hat the year Yaz hit the home run in the World Series." Weed took it off and tossed it to his sister.

_Sapphire, what is he talking about?_

_Never mind, Steel. It isn't relevant to this mission. _"Then what did you do?"

"I went inside. I was only going to step inside past the door, but then I heard someone crying. I figured it was a little kid who got lost in here so I went to go help him or her, I couldn't tell which." Weed took a step and, instantly, Steel was there blocking his path.

"You stay here. I will take your place." He smiled slightly. "We don't want to lose you for another fifteen years."

"Okay, I'll just stand in the doorway, then." Jane joined him on the porch and took his hand.

Steel stepped inside the door and took a few steps in. "Where did you go from here?"

"I stood there for a couple of second to let my eyes adjust."

Steel didn't say that he didn't need that time. His eyes adjusted instantly, then he heard something, like a cross between a whimper and a cry.

_Sapphire?_

_I hear it, Steel. Follow it. _

Steel moved slowly through the debris that was scattered about on the floor. "Hello?"

Weed turned concerned eyes to Sapphire. "He hears it, doesn't he?"

Sapphire nodded slowly. "Yes."

"He can't! He can't go!" Weed pulled free of his sister's grasp and ran into the building. Jane was on his heels and Sapphire after that.

"No! Jimmie, you can't!" Jane tried to drag him back, then froze at Steel's shout. Weed shook free and headed towards the back room.

Steel was fighting something. It dwarfed him, yet he seem to be holding his own against it. The black mass tried to envelop him and surround him, but kept pulling back as if burned.

"Leave him alone!" Weed shouted and suddenly Steel dropped to the ground, panting.

"Sapphire, don't let it touch him."

Sapphire tried to step in front of Weed, but then Jane was there.

"Rudy, Rudy, honey, it's me, Janie. Do you remember? Remember how we used to play with your blocks." Her voice shook. "We'd make castles and you'd save me on your white horse."

The entry stopped, quivering and abruptly it split into two. One fell back while the other lurched forward.

"No," Steel said and grabbed it from behind. With a shriek, it struggled in his grasp. "Sapphire, now!"

Her eyes glowed an eerie blue and she smiled. "Hello, Europium, time to go home." She snatched the shape from Steel and abruptly vanished from view. Steel dropped to the floor, exhausted. Weed looked from the empty space and raised a fist as if to strike Steel.

"Don't touch me unless you want to lose a hand to frostbite." Wisps of white vapor formed around Steel as he staggered to his feet. "And now you." He reached for the second form.

"No," Jane said. She stepped up to the entity. "I need to go home now, Rudy, and so do you. Your family is waiting for you. They know how hard you fought to try and save them. You don't have to stay here."

For a long moment there was no movement and then a thin band of black reached out from the form. It looked almost hand like.

"I think just this time it will be okay to hug, Rudy. Just be careful." She embraced the shape and hugged it until it faded from view. She fell to her knees and began to weep.

She felt gentle hands on her shoulders and Sapphire kneeled beside her, hugging her. "He's gone now. You freed him. He was trapped here by Europium. He was using this spot to trap time and he needed Rudy's strength to make that happen."

"Who?"

"You knew him as Barkley. In its physical state, Europium is white and its power is easily diluted by water." Sapphire helped Jane to her feet. "I merely returned it to its own dimension and let Time readjust for itself."

"But what happened?"

"When Rudy saw that Europium was going to harm Jane, it gave him the strength to pull free." Sapphire walked over to Steel. "Are you all right?"

"I will be after a few dozen degrees." Steel's teeth chattered. "Why don't you escort our young friends home and I will clean up here?"

"But all those people-" Weed started.

"Sadly, they are gone. Trapped and used up by Europium. Because Rudy recognized you, he was able to wrestle you free from Europium's grasp."

Sapphire led them to the door and let them proceed her out into the night air.

"Hey, Weed, are you back already?" Hasting was tossed Weed's hat up and down in the air. "Janie, what are you doing here?"

Weed looked at his sister and nearly gasped. She was twelve again. She looked at her hands and then him, then threw her arms around his neck.

"You saved me!" She rubbed imaginary tears from her eyes. "Some mean kids chased me inside and wouldn't let me out. Jimmie saved me."

"It's what a big brother does." He looked at the group of boys. "Where's… where's Barkley?"

"Beats me. He took off the minute you went inside. He said he felt rain."

"Talk about chicken." He took his baby sister's hand. "Come on, Janie Doodle, it's time you were in bed." He darted a quick look at some bushes, the shook his head. "Let's go home."

Sapphire and Steel watched the group weave their way through the tangle of weeds and junk.

_Will he remember? _Steel rested his hand on the side of the house, partially for support and partially to listen to the excitement of his brothers. Soon, the house would come down and they, too, would be freed from their prison. They knew and they celebrated.

_Perhaps, but the memories are rapidly fading, as if they never happened. Indeed, they didn't_

_And Europium?_

_They were very glad to see him. Now They will have an additional bargaining chip._

_And Time?_

Sapphire closed her eyes and felt it ebb and flow, seemingly relieved to have escaped. _Just as it should be. Free._


End file.
